Thursday, June 17, 2010

More blast from the past. I had this urge for creative musings some 10 years back when i was in my 3rd week stay in USA.

It is not at all relevant or significance or will not even make a change in your life. No divine luck will dawn upon you. Neither you will attain salvation reading this. Having eloquently desribed the purpose of it above. Please read on.

Its been long time since I wrote..what rot..wrote,kapda aur makaan, but I was really very busy...there comes all the brickbats... but I did miss you all... what no bouquets... oh you caught me this time... howzzat !! thought for writing for so long but when I now sit down to write..I am lost..know not what to write...but phir bhi, read on...

Life in Raleigh, that cannot be describe in one word..

People do ask me how do I feel in america.. (yeah, I am a celebrity..I do miss my fans and I dont have a fan in my home..) well, I do not know about that, its a mix bag.. at times, the feeling is exhilarating and at times frustrating, so nothing has changed, except for the ambience, I mean, the surroundings are different, from India to US but goals and work has not changed, I am still working hard, though its really hard to work at times, I still sleep at odd hours, and during even hours, oh..forget it...

I am scared at times for I cannot foresee the future, what it holds, and I am optimistic at times, that whatever it holds, it holds for good. I get apprehensive and pensive with no funding and aid...but I am ecstatic at least I dont have AIDS... I feel nostalgic and home sick at times..but then remember the times when I used to feel sick at home.. I feel isolated with my best friends not around and I miss them all but then there are times when I feel lucky that I can give some of the people a miss.. I get nightmares that everything is gonna fall apart but I dream that world is gonna be a better place..(altruism,nah..just plain me ...)

So this is really me, I am an ABCD, american based confused desi and I was no better in india where I was a NRI,not required indian, so what has changed, the change is gradual, I am realising my responsibilities, and also realising how to avoid them... though it may take some time to change my perspective... the truth I am not at the center of the world and world does not revolve around me is a revelation... but the Narcissus within me is still alive..no wonder I have so many mirrors in my house...

Life is cold and warm at the same time, its funny and tragic, caring and supporting but also a strict task master... may be life contradicts itself.. even I feel contradiction is my best friend.. its always like these, if there is a Yin then Yang will be somewhere nearby.. a day always follow the night.. good times are right behind the bad.. may be there is Hope, tomorrow is another day !!

If you understood what I wrote please explain it to me, for I could not, I just wrote, Dil Se..

Much has been said about asoka. Its been panned to glory. The movie most of us love to hate. I too have my 2 cents on this movie.

Asoka, the movie is an experience. Its been bad for many and some of us have enjoyed it. I fall in the later category. I agree with the makers that Asoka the movie is "a little bit of zen and a little bit of sin". India knows who was Ashoka, the emperor. He was the brightest star in indian history. Asoka, the movie does not give a damn about the obvious instead it dwelves into asoka,the man. The man before destiny made him ashoka, the great. Here lies the greatness and the pitfall of the movie. It tries to understand the psyche of the neglected son of Bindusara who adores his mother. Who wants that his mother gets her due as the wife of bindusara and not his dasi. (watch for Asoka's expression when the king does not reward him after his triumph of Takshila)

One of the key scene is when a Buddhist monk tells Asoka that his destiny transcends that of an emperor. His destiny is that of a traveller when he completes his journey. Here is the soul of the movie. It tries to follow the journey of Asoka who does not know where he is heading. And if you dont know where are you heading, no direction is wrong.

What made Asoka transform into how we now him is the crux of the movie. He lost the love of his mother and the girl he loved (this is where folk stories come into picture). How many of us when we lose the things we love react, we become cynical and either we become depressed or we become angry. Asoka was a warrior,he chose to become angry. He became avenging and scheming king who did not fear death. (Another thing that i like were the dialogues instead of monologues, they were short, sweet and simple). Killing his brothers he says "Can i be allowed to be the king now?", a touch of sarcasm, a macabre humor.

The highlight of the movie is the post-war scene when Asoka is looking for Kaurwaki, its a magic scene. Its twilight and sun and the moon and the stars shining, as if nature is looking forward to the history that is being created. Asoka sees the death, the gory, the sadness and he sees Love, he sees Kaurwaki and dead Arya. Life comes full circle, the journey is completed. Asoka is a changed man. Movie ends, History begins.

Saturday, April 04, 2009

I recommend that you read it at PFC. There are many better posts than this one. You won't be disappointed. But again, I am reproducing over here with some minor changes (I am embedding the video instead of giving the link)

This post was long due. Seriously. I had been on a trip. Without Ecstasy or LSD. Before you start thinking of directing me to some Anonymous group, allow me to explain what I have been upto.

Or lets do it my way. Flash back to December 2008. On a tiny corner of the last page of Ahmedabad Times I see this Ad. It begged to stay inconspicuous (that's the only grudge I have with the Ad). Luck by Chance, my Lady Luck aka my Taani parnter aka my lovely wife Tina (There Is No Alternative..well thats a story for some other time :-)) saw it. So did I eventually. I was excited. Now, this Ad was not like those that had some Fraanship Clubs which are out to fleece imbecile guys on testosterone overdose. Hook(er), Line and Single and ultimately Sinker. This was different.

I called up the number they had provided, asked for the details, gave mine in return. The voice on the other side promised me to reply on the mail-ji. Pleased with the response, I waited. Never before I would refresh Mail-G client so frequently. Don't know that pissed off Google or what, I got no reply that day. The night was long (duh, it was winter) which did not matter as I slept peacefully.

The next morning, Bhor bhai, Panchi Jaage aur Jaag Utha Insaan. I called the number again just to confirm whether they had got my right email ID or some body else was benefitting on my behalf. My doubts were unfounded as the details were right there on top of my mail box. It co-incided with my state of my mind. I was on top. Top of the world, you sneaky perverts. Get out. Now came the part which had to come. Should I take the pluncge or should I not. No rose petals nipped, no coins to be tossed. It was a simple problem of analyzing the probability using the Gausian curve and then eliminating the choice which I never wanted to take at first place. The answer was right there. Its the question that drives us crazy, my friend Neo would feel. In neo-Bodhi Gaya enlightening moment, I said: Yes, I can.

With the details in my hand, I felt like a man. Baba, with other stuff also I have felt like a man. But this one is for family reading so no Dada Kondke baazi here. I met him and paid the amount. The man was portly but had tons of energy. We got talking till the next prospective and petite young thing came by. I took leave and also some gyaan on that day.

The D-day came. January 20th,2009. I was waiting for PYT. She never showed up. I felt like I was dumped. I called my wife. She promised to stick around with me still. That was close. Luckily, that man did show up. That man, He is Mr Pankaj Roy. He was meant to be our course co-ordinator. Yes, Mere dost, I had joined a course on film-making. Courtesy Institute of Moving Images. The course was short-term also suitable for people who were like in Ghajini mode lest they forget why they were here.

Day 1 was introduction also it was the day of introspection. Why am I here? I was asked so were others. It was not meant to question whether we made a mistake being there or regret shelling out nine grand. It was meant to know what your true calling was. Like my friend Neo said, Its the question that drives us crazy. I mumbled some words. Words that I felt and meant.

What followed in this journey for the next 11 days (spread across 6 weeks) was nothing short of magical. ThodaPyaar, Thoda Magic. Love fostered at home. Magic and learning happened in class rooms. The classes began at 5:30 in the evening and lasted till almost midnight, way beyond their end time of 9 PM. One madness survived the other. Marriage and Movie making. We talked, discussed, ranted about ideas and concepts and plots and scripts. There was training on know-how about the Camera and angles, image size. Hands-on experience with camera. We learnt about scripts, different stages of script writing. About direction and production, about planning and editing and then some.

But I learnt something way beyond that. I learnt discipline, I discovered myself. I learned that hamari filmo ki tarah hamari life mein bhi dukaandaari nahi honi chahiye. You have to have passion in life. Passionate about movies. Passionate about everything you do. You have to give unconditionally to a movie, to life and then let magic take over. Jaadu wahi jo sir chhad kar bole.

Pankaj Sir, hats off to you Dada, you changed so many lives. you took classes for 7 hours continuously without getting tired or showing any signs of exhaustion. He enthralled us, entertained us and yes, we learnt along the way. Learning was never so much fun.

I made few movies during the course and in the course of making another one. Will leave you one of my short that I made as part of the course work. The assignment was to make a 3-minute observational movie which depicts an activity from start to end. I talk to a street side painter and took lot of convincing for him to star and paint a sketch on camera.

By the way, there was nothing like heart breaking actually. Or there was. When the classes ended. The journey came to an end. For me, it just had begun.

Ahmedabad is famous for few things. Textile mills, in an era lost. Stock brokers and traders in this era. Also, famous for its typical Amdavadi mentality :-)

Time has come to add, to borrow a cliche, an another feather in its Topi. The Ahmedabad International Film Festival 2009. I went and met the organizers (Shiladitya - the main guy and Ajit heading Programming) and they are gung-ho about it. This is what the organizer have to say.

We’re pleased to announce to you the Ahmedabad International Film Festival presented by FulMarxx Integrated Filmed Entertainment Company based in Ahmedabad.

Aimed at providing a platform to showcase the works of upcoming filmmakers from India and across the world, we started as an exclusive short films festival and are now venturing into an international film festival in Ahmedabad.

We are ambitious about our foray into cinema and have worked dedicatedly for the past two years to tab the market for short films and in return find an audience for new filmmakers. We aim at making this festival an annual feature in Ahmedabad on the lines of the festivals held in various cities world over. We can’t achieve this feat without the encouragement and support of institutes and individuals like you.

The major attractions include:

- Best of World Cinema | in association with NDTV Lumiere- Best of Berlinale | Berlin International Film Festival- Best of Tampere Film Festival, Finland- Best of Children’s Films- Cinema of Gujarat- Short Films Competitive- Feature Films Competitive- We Care HIV+ | in association with AIESEC- Theatre by Cyrus Dastur and Tom Alter- Coffee Table Book Launch- Short Films Bazaar- Special Golf Sessions for Juries and Guests- Heritage Walk of Ahmedabad

We are looking at an audience of diverse interests within the gamut of filmmaking- established and upcoming filmmakers, art connoisseurs, artists, film buyers and enthusiasts and the decision makers of the global filmmaking trends, not to forget the paparazzi. However, we do not intend to be blinded by the flash lights. True to our roots, our commitment remains to bring the magic of cinema and storytelling to the daily viewer.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Who comes up with this stuff? Well, the answer is: Not one but six people. All separated within six degress, I am sure.

Unbelievable stuff, I mean whom do I give credit for this quote.

1. You can accomplish much if you don't care who gets the credit.Ronald Reagan

2. There is no end to what you can accomplish if (or when) you don't care who gets the credit. Florence Luscomb

3. There is no limit to the good you can do if you don't care who gets the credit.General George C. Marshall4. There's no limit to what a man can achieve, if he doesn't care who gets the credit.Laing Burns, Jr.

5. It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.Harry S. Truman

6. It is amazing how much can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the credit.John Wooden

Thursday, December 18, 2008

I really wanted to talk about movies that I had liked in past six months or more but never got time. These also include movies that were made ages ago but I never saw them. Most of them merit an individual post. Don't know if that will happen in this lifetime. And you can blame that on hours that I spend watching movies.

Anyways, these are the movies that I would recommend, in no particular order.

I had written the draft around first week of August, 2008. Thought would add more to it. But don't feel like doing anymore. So I let it be. The only question is whether we will be united in '08 to fight our war?

7th August, 2008

The end credits start rolling. I continue staring at the screen. No one survived the crash on that day. United 93 flight "terminates" on HBO. In the other room, its another world. Mom and Dad share a joke. He chuckles, she laughs. The world is back to normal.

I am thousand of miles away today. That day, I was few hundred miles away. A sense of grief, triumph, and relief interject each other. I may never know what made the passengers do the inevitable. I may never know how would I respond to such situation.